Ansel Adams
February 20, 1902 – April 22, 1984 was an American born photographer and environmentalist. He is famous for his pictures of Yellowstone nation park in the USA.
These pictures would fit into the section of wilderness images. They show how wild and unforgiving places can be. He shot on 5x4 large format and his images are always highly detailed. He takes great time composing his images for maximum visual impact. They always have a sense of power and putting you in your place in the grand scheme of things.
Fay Godwin
17 February 1931 – 27 May 2005 was a British landscape photographer who was president of the British Ramblers association. She took many images of the English landscape.
These images show how our own countries landscape. They show the beauty in the barrenness of the landscape. She used light to great effect to add a dramatic effect to the images, these shafts of light give a sense of scope to the images showing how vast the landscape is and how little we are in the grand scheme of things.
Luke Powell
Luke is a Canadian landscape photographer who has traveled to many of the hardest to reach places in the world. Places that today are war zones and the most hostile places on the planet. He went to capture images no one else has taken, showing that even the most foreign environments are beautiful.
These images show that the hardest to reach places often have some of the most breathtaking views of all. Today however these areas of Afganistan and Pakistan are warzones, the mountains pictured are home to religious fanatics who's only goal is to rid the world of any who dont follow the same religion as they do. However these images show the true awe inspiring beauty of these places, making it hard to believe it is perhaps the most dangerous place to be on the planet.
Doug Anderson
Doug Anderson is a cameraman and has worked on every BBC series of 'The Blue Planet', 'Planet Earth' and 'Life'. He is currently working on 'The frozen planet' for the BBC. His work takes him to the most inhospitable places on the planet where he captures the areas breathtaking beauty.
These images which include a under water shot, have to have been some of the most difficult images to capture do to the remoteness of the location and the specialist skills required for the under water shot. The panoramas give a sense of scale, it gives the effect of making you fell very small.
Edward Weston
1986 - 1958 is a American photographer often thought of as one of the most innovative and influential of all time. He felt he brought his 'Americanism' to photography.
These images show the vastness of the world around us. They show that sometimes there is repetition and symmetry in the world around us. And then even over great distances there is always something bigger or more interesting just around the next corner or over the next mountain.
Andre Kertesz
1894 - 1985 is a Hungarian Born photographer best known for his groundbreaking contributions to composition and photoessay.
These images show that there does not have to be a conventional way of composing images. And that the best images are the ones taken from places no one else would go to or think of going to. These images make an everyday sight much more unique and interesting. Even reflections can be used to create a great urban landscape photograph.
Eugene Atget
1857 - 1927 Is a French photographer best known for documenting the streets of Paris.
These images again are a example of how a unusual composition can make a great photograph. While these images document what people see every day, it is the composition which plays a important role. If it is a perspective that is different, if only slightly then it can create a whole new feel to a place. Often as well images from the same view as they are seen every day can cause people to see details they overlook.
Paul Strand
1890 - 1975 Is a American Photographer and filmaker who helped establish photography as a art form in the 20th century.
These images are highly abstract and show a gritty, mundane aspect to city living. They feel very dirty and cold. They have a depressing feel to them. It feels like just another average day, with everything going as it usually does. There is nothing particularly unique about that situation, but the moment in time is captured. And with it the feel of the city itself.
AMA - Sports Photo agency
These are some excellent images taken in low light, under floodlight with a wide angle lens. Like the one i intend to use. They show the grand nature of the stadiums, which contrasts against the boys in the top picture who have to make do with a flooded pitch with no nets. From grassroots right the way to the top.
James Cannon
James is a editorial and features photographer. He shoots for football club magazines and websites.
These pictures are typical match day pictures. They show the grand scale of the events he is photographing and the places he is photographing. Not only do they show the scale they also show the feel and good nature of the events.
A familiar place that is significant or important to you
Old Trafford
Through the last 15 years of my life i have attended over 400 Manchester United home games. Thats 25 days of my life sat in my seat for game time, a total of 37.5 days inside the stadium. I have traveled over 10,000 miles just to Old Trafford. It is a place i have seen grow up with me. Its also a place that gets visited by millions of people each year.
I plan to use a wide angle lens plus my own personal intimate knowledge of the stadium to take some unique and interesting photographs.
"From a design perspective, a wide angle lens is one that projects a substantially larger image circle than would be typical for a standard design lens of the same focal length; this enables either large tilt & shift movements with a view camera, or lenses with wide fields of view.
More informally, in photography and cinematography, a wide-angle lens refers to a lens whose focal length is substantially shorter than the focal length of a normal lens for the image size produced by the camera, whether this is dictated by the dimensions of the image frame at the film plane for film cameras (film format) or dimensions of the photosensor for digital cameras.
By convention, in still photography, the normal lens for a particular format has a focal length approximately equal to the length of the diagonal of the image frame or digital photosensor. In cinematography, a somewhat longer lens is considered "normal".
There is an easy formula for calculating the angle of view for any lens that produces a rectilinear image. In addition to giving a wider angle of view, the image produced by a wide-angle lens is more susceptible to perspective distortion than that produced by a normal lens, because they tend to be used much closer to the subject."
Examples of a 10-22mm lens in use.
Some examples of wide angle photography.
Manchester United Official photographer
http://www.manutdpics.com/
Manchester United employ a photographic agency to produce their images for marketing purposes.
"Media Storehouse Ltd have been providing public and professionals image buyers with stunning imagery from some of the worlds best resources for many years.
Photographers. photo libraries, national trusts, museums, football and rugby clubs are just a few of the organisations providing the best images and covering every subject.
We provide a complete solution from hosting images and other forms of digital media to producing product based on that media and dispatching it to clients. In addition to systems relating to the delivery of physical product to consumers we now also offer solutions to those wishing to syndicate their media to business users."
While these images may well be the official images produced by Manchester United, they feel very cold. They are not taken from any other perspective other than to get the job done. There is no bias of political feel to them. I feel the overall standard of images is poor and i plan to reproduce so higher quality images if possible.
1/124 f11 ISO 125 - Daylight balanced
1/250 f11 ISO 125 - Daylight Balanced
1/250 f11 ISO 125- Daylight Balanced
1/80 f8 ISO 125 - Daylight balanced
1/125 f11 ISO 125 - Daylight Balanced
1/125 f8 ISO 125 - Daylight Balanced
Final Image
The City or Urban sprawl
I plan to photograph my own city of Manchester I want to create some really interesting cityscapes, I was inspired by a local photographer called Ed O'Keeffe, who has taken many pictures in the city center. I plan to use my own knowledge of the city center to produce some images.
However i decided that the city center may well have been over done photographically. I felt the newly developed Salford Quays area would produce a higher standard of image, the area is being intensely developed with the BBC moving there very shortly. And more production studios and sound stages being built at the moment in and around Media City.
Images of Media City, taken from Flickr and the official Media city website.
Some tests shots i did, i took these from above Bury.
Final Images from the center of Manchester at Media City
1/80 F11 ISO 100
1/80 F11 ISO 100
These two were selected as my final images. However there was a hair on my sensor that shows on the images. So i used the clone stamp to remove them. Then made them into a diptic.
The wilderness
I plan to visit Bristol and the surrounding areas of Wells and Cheddar to show the remoteness of the areas.
ISO 100 - 1/80 f8
ISO 100 - 1/125 F5.6
Final image
The alien environment - Paris
In early February i visited Paris, France and spent 3 days photographing the city. These are some of my results.
Visit Australia - Feb 7th 2011 - 1/250 - f11 - ISO 200 - 25mm
Eiffel Tower - Feb 7th 2011 - 1/250 - f18 - ISO 2500 - 10mm
Top of the Eiffel tower - Feb 7th 2011 - 1/160 - f22 - ISO 1250 - 11mm
Long walk Paris - Feb 8th 2011 - 1/60 - f11 - ISO 1250 - 55mm
Notre Dame - Feb 9th 2011 - 1/200 - f25 - ISO 1250 - 20mm
Notre Dame - Feb 9th 2011 - 1/80 - f5.6 - ISO 6000 - 20mm
Paris - Feb 8th 2011 - 1/200 - f22 - ISO 1250 - 10mm
Paris - Feb 8th 2011 - 1/320 - f22 - ISO 1250 - 12mm
Final images.
Final Image Evaluations
A familiar or significant place
I feel that these two images best represent the place i know. The wide angle lens captures the scene well allowing the massive stadium to be fitted into the image. The setting sun behind the stadium creates a very moody atmosphere. It adds a sense grandeur to the pictures. The statue at the front of the stadium adds a sense of history to the image, with three of the greatest players of all time looking up at the stadium. Between the legs of the players you can see the Sir Matt Busby statue. The second image is the United holy trinity statue. The three greatest players of all time. Best, Law and Charlton. There is a deep effection from all United fans for these players. I tried to make the image seem as moody and ghostly as i possibly could. Not because the players are dead (Only one has died) but because these players are so legendary, hence why they are called the holy trinity.
I chose to present these images as a diptic because i feel presenting the two images together brings the set together and distinctly separates the images from the others.
Urban
I went to Media City in Manchester and took pictures of the new development there. It was a cloudy overcast day so used the wide angle lens to try and best capture the atmosphere around the area. I feel these two images best reflect the urban expansion as they show how what was once a heavy industrial area is now being transformed into a modern development where TV and radio shows will be produced.
I chose to present these images as a diptic because i feel presenting the two images together brings the set together and distinctly separates the images from the others.
The wilderness
These pictures were taken in cheddar gorge near bristol. They show the road from right about the tarmac, i hoped to show even the remotest places in our country are assessable because of our road system. I wanted the image to be taken from a different or unusual perspective so i chose from road level. The massive gorge is made to feel even larger by the perspective. The changing weather made the two ways up and down the valley seem like out the valley was to the warmer safter place while down seems darker and more mysterious.
I chose to present these images as a diptic because i feel presenting the two images together brings the set together and distinctly separates the images from the others.
Foreign environment
For these two pictures i chose the two sides of Paris. I chose to have the old city view from the top of Notre Dame contrasting against the new side of Paris. The brand new business district. I feel the merry go round in the business district is a very surreal sight and with business men walking around in in their suits. The big buildings surrounding this also make it a odd sight. The very serious tall buildings dwarf the little merry go round. The old view of Paris is one the more iconic views with the gargoyle looking out towards the Eiffel Tower. The overcast nature of the images fit with the dark and quite scary nature of the gargoyle. It looks as if the gargoyle is about to take off and fly towards the Eiffel Tower.
I chose to present these images as a diptic because i feel presenting the two images together brings the set together and distinctly separates the images from the others.
